Love is Immortality
by Mystical-Magical-Hormones
Summary: Over a thousand years ago, Haru was cursed to live forever and he's been lost in monotony ever since. He's stayed safe, never straying to the things that drive immortals mad but even that is driving him crazy. One day, on the pier of some fishing town he stayed in by chance he meets Rin, a redhead who personifies all that's alive in life and Haru decides to break the rules.
1. Love is Immortality

AN:Hi! So remember when I said I would write a one shot that has nothing to do with Abnormal Functioning of Neurotransmitter Systems? Well here it is! Also, sorry if it's not well proofread, I really wanted to upload it tonight but I promise, I'll give it a better check over soon.

AN: Update, so I just proofread this and changed the title.

Life before was hazy and insignificant and the years had been long. They'd been hundreds (if not thousands). And Haru had been feeling tired, he'd been feeling so tired. Why he had been condemned to live forever was confusing. It was quite literally a curse. He couldn't remember why he'd been cursed, he just remembered he had been.

He's seen everything. He was sure that there was nothing new, and when there was it wasn't worth caring about. Even his friends, his comrades, had been condemned to similar fates. Though they didn't seem to view it as cynically. Nagisa was a fairy, of sorts, who found joy in the idea of immortality, having time to do everything. Makoto, who was a vampire, also found that it was nice getting to meet so many people and help them with so many years of his own experience. Haru supposed that they could be optimistic, they got to have some sort of gift with their immortality. All Haru had was not aging and being generally impervious. He supposed he should be glad that the sorceress wasn't that good a sorceress that she could have kept him aging.

As he looked in the reflection of the ocean over the side of the cozy fishing town pier, he wondered what a man of over a thousand years would look like. Ugly, probably. He imagined the gnarly, wrinkly, shriveled up, skin that was pale as a cadaver.

The pier wasn't empty. In fact, it was a vibrant bloom of light, even if it was night. Teenagers dangled over the edge, throwing rocks or various types of food into the sea which lapped at the edge of the pillars. Mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, brothers and sisters, aunties and uncles, family members of all types paraded up and down. Either little kids grabbing a parent's hand, or teenagers texting with a mask of indifference across their face. Some parents pointedly avoided their spouses gaze in sordid bitterness from the sharp aftertaste of some argument or the other. Other parents held each other's hands with sweet looks in their eyes as though they had never left their honeymoon phase.

Haru sighed and turned back to looking at the sea over the edge of the fence. Even if he climbed over the edge with rock laden pockets and tape over his nose and mouth, he wouldn't die. He knew because he'd tried. Hit by a bus, run down by a horse, stabbed in the heart, heart removed completely, bullet to the brain, a conflagration, a great height, smallpox and blight. Nothing killed him, he was impervious to everything. Everything.

"...You're seriously going through with that?"

"It's not that weird!"

"It's not weird, I think... but it's not like it's going to work."

Haru sighed as he realised to two teenagers had occupied the space to his right to have a loud, obnoxious conversation about their lives. It was funny, Haru thought, that the general rule of the this world was that the shorter your life is, the more of it there actually is. The more important every little thing was.

"It might work."

"It definitely won't," the first speaker paused, "She's just not that sort of girl."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"She hates video games, she won't get the reference at all."

He turned his head to see the two teenagers. One was a redhead with a black beanie tugged over his long hair, with red eyes, and pale skin which had a slight blush dusted across it from the cold breeze. He was grinning at the other boy who, presumably, was the redhead's friend. The other boy was slightly shorter than the redhead. He had black hair and a pair of glasses.

"I think she's played this one before."

"No, she just shared a reference on _Facebook_ that she didn't get to seem like she's more cultured than she is... Even though Skyrim isn't exactly haute couture."

Once again, Haru found himself lost in the teenagers' conversations, as per usual. He went look back to looking at the rippling waves but his eyes kept creeping back to the redhead. He was so insanely lively and vibrant. Each part of him just screamed "Life." His blood flushed face, the twinkling in his eyes, the way he quirked his lip or an eyebrow (or two) in dizzying motions which reflected every emotion flickering through his heart.

A particularly strong gust of wind came along and blew the redhead's beanie off. Without thought, Haru lunged forward and grabbed the hat. It smelt floral, which was odd for a boy.

Then the redhead turned from his friend and looked at Haru. It was scary to have someone with that many intense emotions simmering under their fingertips devote that much concentration on you. It was like someone was holding hundreds of laser points in your heart and pinned every muscle in your body to the wall.

Haru didn't know what to say, so instead he wordlessly pushed the hat towards the redhead, whose eyes were still wide and blank and his eyebrows were crinkled. His eyes flicked downwards, making his long black eyelashes flutter. The redhead put his hands on the hat and took it back.

"Thanks," he said.

"You're welcome," Haru responded.

There was a tense pause.

"I'm sorry, um, do you live here?" the redhead asked.

"I'm new to the area."

"Will you be going to our school?"

"I don't do school," Haru replied.

"Really? Why?"

"It's personal."

"Oh, okay," the redhead huffed.

"Where do you go to school?" Haru asked.

"It's personal," the redhead hummed.

"Very clever," Haru hummed. "What's your name?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"I'll tell you my name, if you tell me yours."

"Fine, my name's Rin. Rin Matsuoka."

"My name is Haru," Haru hadn't actually told anyone his real name in centuries, literally. Yet he felt compelled to uphold his end of the bargain in their bizarre little trade.

"Well, Haru, maybe I'll see you around," Rin smirked before affixing his beanie back on his head and walking away with his friend further down the pier.

_Ah... shit_, thought Haru. An important rule of staying sane when you're immortal is to never befriend anyone who's, well, mortal. Sure, Haru felt a little stir-crazy, felt like bashing a hammer through his head to deal with the boredom. Yet, he never felt pain like a knife in his heart because he had to watch someone he cared for grow old and die whilst he just sat beside them never changing, never being able to have the relief of thinking "Hey, I'll see you in the afterlife soon."

He'd managed to avoid that so far, avoiding every human life, only interacting with immortals. No one he'd even remotely held dear had died, he still had Makoto, he still had Nagisa. He had their names on a mobile phone he rarely used which currently sat in the bedsit he'd booked for the week.

"Do not come back to this pier tomorrow," he told himself and left.

* * *

><p>Here he was, at the pier. He was not waiting for the redhead, Rin, to come. He'd just wanted to get some of the deep fried fish from the stand near the front entrance and just keep looking at the sea.<p>

"Hi, Haru," Rin appeared behind him, a mocking tone underlying his voice as he tapped his back.

"Hello, Rin," he replied, calmly.

"Have you just been here staring at the ocean?" Rin asked with a quirked eyebrow, he had some sort of deep fried fish on a stick poised by his mouth.

"Yes, it's relaxing."

"Sounds boring," Rin huffed before chewing on the food by his mouth with a contemplative look on his face.

"So, Haru, what do you like to do, except for saving hats and looking at water?" Rin asked after swallowing the food in his mouth.

"Nothing, really."

"God, you make yourself sound so boring. Come on, you've got to like something."

"I suppose I like swimming," Haru replied, holding back a glare at the redhead who was practically hanging off the fence with the way his hand was draped over it.

"Really?" He smiled. "I love swimming! Have done since I was little. I'm actually on the school swimming team."

"That's nice."

"Yeah, I went to Australia to train once. I'm really good at swimming. Bet I'm better than you."

"Maybe, I've had a long time to practice," Haru replied. The redhead stiffened and regarded Haru more formally.

"What, really? How old are you?"

"Eighteen," Haru lied. "I mean that, since I don't go to school all that much, I'm quite good at swimming."

"Really? Do you wanna race me then?"

"Not really."

"Ugh, why?"

"Not my thing."

"You're so boring."

"You've said."

"Well, anyway, I've got to get back to my friends," Rin said with a smile and a wave. Haru looked over the redhead's shoulder and saw the black haired boy with glasses was in a group with a girl who was most likely Rin's sister, another girl with brown hair and green eyes, a tall black haired boy with teal eyes, two redheads who were siblings but not related to Rin, and a silver haired boy who was the shortest of the bunch for sure.

* * *

><p>The week dragged on and Haru found his feet taking him to the pier to meet up with Rin every night, feeling butterflies in stomach every time. He felt like he needed a slap across the face to snap him out of the phase. He knew he didn't just want to be friends with Rin, he wanted more than friends which was so wrong and would hurt even more than if they were just friends.<p>

He and Rin had a chat on the pier and Rin, once again, pestered him to race him and Haru, suprising himself and Rin, agreed.

"What, seriously?" Rin gasped.

"Yeah, why not."

"Okay, well, come meet me at my school on... I think Tuesday's good... yeah, Tuesday at four,."

"Okay," Haru nodded, admiring the smile on Rin's lips.

"Crap, you don't know what school I got to. It's Samezuka Academy."

"Right, what's the address?"

"It's actually, right across the road from here. Well, I mean like, if you go across the road and keep going left then take the first turn north and keep going you'll see it. You can't miss it."

"I'll take your word for it."

* * *

><p>Rin's directions were ingrained in his mind and he found himself walking the directions perfectly at four o'clock on Tuesday with his heart in his tongue. He felt a twinge in his head when he remembered he'd only meant to stay for a week. He'd stayed longed so he could race Rin. He'd probably stay a bit longer after that.<p>

"Haru, you came!"

He would stay a bit longer after the race.

"Yeah, you wouldn't happen to have any spare swimsuits?"

"Oh, yeah, we have loads in lost and found, I'll show you where it is," Rin said before beckoning Haru to follow him which Haru surely did.

The lost and found wasn't filled with nice swimsuits you'd want to keep. Haru wouldn't be suprised if the clothes had been lost on purpose. Rin dug through the box trying to find something he deemed to be about Haru's size.

"How about these?" Rin called over his shoulder and then threw a pair of stone grey jammers at Haru's face. He took a few moments to gather himself before peeling them off his face and give them a quick inspection.

"Yeah, they'll do," Haru replied.

"Great, I'll show you where the changing room is... crap, did you bring a towel?"

"Uh... no," Haru replied.

"Guess we better grab one from here then," Rin replied tugging a threadbare towel from the rack. Haru noted that Rin had pulled his hair into a cute little ponytail.

"We ready?" Rin asked with a smile. Haru nodded.

Like he knew he would, because little suprised him these days, Haru won. However, he really hadn't expected Rin to be so fast. It was bizarre to find out they'd practically tied. Haru supposed that it was because his heart wasn't in it, as it hadn't been in anything for a long time. But it couldn't be true, his heart had never pounded harder, his skin had never tingled so much, his blood had never fizzled in his veins, he'd never been so alive.

"That was amazing," Rin gasped as he pulled off his cap.

"It was," Haru replied.

"We've got to do that again sometime," Rin grinned.

"Yeah," Haru agreed.

* * *

><p>Over the weeks, Haru got to know more and more about Rin. He learned about his disdain for sweet foods, and his love for meats and spices. Rin told him all about his dream to get a gold medal for his dearly departed dad. Haru noticed Rin's eccentric flair for his fashion and realised that Rin had very sharp teeth. Rin mentioned one time that he could speak fluent English. Haru, by accident, discovered that Rin was also a closet hopeless romantic. Haru found it endearing but Rin was so completely embarrassed that he just blushed for a long time before changing the subject.<p>

Haru also raced Rin regularly. Though Haru found that they actually seemed to tie more often than they found themselves with a definitive victor.

Haru was in so deep that he actually felt dizzy when he thought about.

* * *

><p>During his fourth week he received a phone call from his long time immortal friend, Makoto.<p>

"Hi, Haru, I wanted to ask how you've been?" he asked cheerily.

"I'm great... and terrible."

"That's definitely different to every other answer you've given me in the past..."

"Circumstances are definitely different now, that's why."

"What do you mean?"

"I've fallen in love with someone," Haru began and before Makoto could interject he finished with: "And they're a mortal."

The 'O' Makoto's mouth formed was audible.

"Wow, Haru. Who is it?"

"A boy called Rin, he's beautiful, vibrant, loving, talented," he listed the adjectives as though he were naming comets that he could peruse with his own eyes as he lay out in a great big field. He had a sudden urge to go stargazing with Rin. He thought about lying on a blanket together, next to each other. Rin would snuggle into Haru's side and almost fall asleep but Haru would capture his chin and lead his plump lips into a kiss and then...

"Haru? Are you there?" Makoto practically yelled down the phone.

"Sorry, I was just dazing out, a bit."

"I was asking you what you're going to do."

"I think I'm going to go stargazing," Haru replied.

"What?" Makoto exclaimed in confusion. Haru hung up the phone and fell asleep to lust ridden dreams about the redhead and what they'd do together.

* * *

><p>"You want to go camping together?" Rin repeated back to Haru as he reclined on his bed.<p>

"Yes, it'd be nice," Haru said from Rin's desk chair.

"Well, I suppose so. Where are we going to go?"

"Somewhere close by... do you know anywhere that's good for stargazing?"

"Stargazing?"

"Yes, I like stargazing."

"Oh, is that why you want to go camping?"

Haru nodded.

"Well, I guess I could do a quick Google search," Rin hummed, as he pulled his _iPhone_ off of his bedside table and began tapping something into the search bar.

"The beach is pretty good for stargazing. Is there a particular constellation you want to see or a comet?"

"No, I just like stargazing. I just don't like going alone," he lied.

"Really, you've always seemed to be the solitary type."

"I tend to be, just not all the time."

* * *

><p>That was how Haru found himself sat on a sand blanket at the top of the beach, sat next to Rin. It wasn't quite the romantic, or sensual, image he'd had in his head but when did fantasy ever match up with reality?<p>

Haru wondered if Rin was oblivious to his feelings or not. He wondered if Rin knew or not. He wondered if Rin felt the same.

"Rin, how do you feel about me?" Haru asked.

"What do you mean?" Rin asked, snapping his head to Haru.

"What's the nature of you're feelings towards me? Platonic? Romantic?"

"Haru- what?"

"Because, I love you, Rin. And it's killing me."

"What do you mean?"

"Rin," Haru grabbed the redhead's hands. They were clammy and they shook as though a million bolts of electricity were running through them. "Can I kiss you?"

Rin's eyes were wide and stared into Haru's own like a little puppy but Rin nodded and Haru's heart skipped a beat. He went forward, almost a little too quickly and kissed Rin with his extremely meager experience. It was a little embarrassing when he thought about the fact he was over a thousand years old and he had very little experience with these kinds of things.

The best part of the kiss wasn't the softness of Rin's skin or lips, the taste of his mouth, or the same floral scent he'd smelt the day they met, but the somewhat erotic manner in which Rin kissed him back.

Haru never wanted to pull away.

* * *

><p>AN: Okay so I'm considering turn this into a series for the time being. I dunno whether to make multiple drabbles or if I should post them as chapters. I think chapters would be easier though.<p> 


	2. What I Cannot Reach!

AN: Yo, so here's number 2. And just before you panic, Rin and Haru will definitely end up together at the end, there just needs to be romantic tension since this is a romance story meaning that their relationship is the main story so having them end up together in the first chapter means it could only work as a short story (As I had originally intended). Also I just wanted to go over some other things. Nagisa, in this story, is non-binary and identifies as pangender. Nagisa's pronouns are "xe, xir, and xem." Also Rin's demisexual and Haru's homosexual. Rin's demisexuality is actually going to be fairly important later on in the story as well. If you want any explanations about these identities, let me know and I'll explain next time.

* * *

><p>It had been a week since Haru had kissed Rin... Rin hadn't talked about it. He had shied away from physical contact in a fashion he hadn't done before. Haru supposed he hadn't fully considered how Rin might've percieved the whole situation. He supposed he should have tried harder to consider how Rin might've seen himself in relation to his own sexuality.<p>

He'd been so sure that Rin wasn't straight. What kind of straight guy legitimately used the phrase "haute couture"?

And standing in front of Rin's house with his fist poised to knock the door but then ending up with it frozen must've looked odd. He pressed the doorbell instead because it was probably more polite. The ding-dong the doorbell made was daunting and ominous, the way that each chime seemed to drag on. His nerves kept him from the pressing the button again.

There was a scuffle of feet and Haru felt his heart beating in his chest. The door opened to reveal Rin's little sister, Gou, whom Haru knew little about.

"Hello?" She said.

"Is Rin here?" He asked.

"No, sorry, he's at late practice with Sousuke," she responded. But then she piped up with a "He'll be home soon, though."

Then she gave Haru the offer to stay at the house until Rin came back, which Haru accepted. When he walked in, Gou told him to wait in the front room and ran off to fetch some tea. Haru decided to just be polite and abstain from divulging into the fact he preferred cold drinks to warm ones and instead took a seat on the plush crochet couch in the cramped front room.

Haru only really knew what Rin's bedroom looked like, and some of the hallway upstairs and downstairs. The front room was nice enough. It had a wooden floor with a beaded rug in the middle with a coffee table on top. Various mugs and trinkets had been scattered over the table, making the room seem like it was in more catastrophic disarray than it really was. There was a medium sized TV in an alcove with a DVD player underneath it and a set of DVDs of varying genres in the cabinet the DVD player was on top of.

Haru noticed that there were various baby and childhood photos tacked to the walls, as well as a few posters for TV shows, movies, and bands. Haru looked at the childhood photos of Rin. He remembered that one time he and Rin had watched an American sit-com aimed at teenagers wherein a character expressed deep embarassement at their parents sharing their baby photos with their crush. The thought gave him a chuckle.

It was fairly difficult to tell, from the baby photos, who was Rin and who was Gou. However, Haru noted from the photos of Rin's childhood that Rin was a cute and feminine child. He'd almost thought he was Gou to begin with but found a group picture and realised the feminine child he'd originally believed to Gou was actually Rin.

"I made the tea," Gou chimed from the doorway, bringing two steam mugs to the table.

"Thank you," Haru replied.

"You want the TV on?" she asked, picking up the remote and waving it.

"I'm fine."

" 'Kay then."

She drummed her fingers against the coffee mug when she wasn't taking sips from it. Haru leaned forward and grab his cup, which had a kind of childish painting of a cat on it, and took a sip. He noticed that Gou's had an elephant on it.

"Sorry about the mugs. Mum's book club was around earlier so a lot of the mugs are still in need of a wash. Also kind of why the room's a mess... Who knew middle aged mothers could get so het up over _Fifty Shades of Grey_?"

"What's that?"

"What... _Fifty Shades of Grey_?" Gou responded, eyebrows creasing. Haru nodded. "It's this book from... America, I think, and it's got all this weird porny stuff in it and my mum hates it because she thinks it's really abusive and so does like fifty percent of the book club, but then the other fifty percent of the book club is like sexually repressed housewives who think it's great so almost every time they have a meeting there's a massive row over it. I heard it's one of the best selling books worldwide."

Haru hummed in response, not really knowing how to answer.

"You can call me Kou, by the way."

"Okay," Haru responded.

The doorbell began ringing crazily and Gou jumped up yelling "That should be them!" and ran to the door. There was a hushed conversation in the hallway and then Rin and a black haired boy with teal eyes walked in, along with Gou.

"Hi, Haru," Rin said, giving an awkward wave. "Uh, this is Sousuke," Rin motioned to the black haired boy with teal eyes, "Sousuke, this is Haru."

"Hi," Sousuke said. Haru gave a small wave in response. Sousuke seated himself on the three person sofa, rather than the two person one Haru had sat on.

"I'll make some tea," Gou chirped.

"I'll help," Rin added, trailing after his younger sister.

"So, you're Haru," Sousuke said, sitting up.

"Yes, I am."

"I've heard about you before," Sousuke said. "Rin told me you're a good swimmer."

"Oh, right."

"He also told me you kissed him," Sousuke scowled.

"It wasn't like that... we kissed, it was mutual."

"What?!"

_Ah, shit._

* * *

><p>Haru, luckily didn't get into a fight because Sousuke started yelling first and then Rin asked him to leave and then they argued. Gou sat in the corner sipping tea, a somewhat exhausted look on her face.<p>

Sousuke did leave in the end and Rin sighed against the door. Then he turned his attention to Haru with a glare in his eyes.

"Damn it, Haru," Rin groaned.

"What did I do?" Haru asked.

"You had to come by tonight, didn't you?"

"You didn't say I couldn't," Haru huffed, crossing his arms.

"You didn't ask if you could."

"I always swing by randomly. I sent you a text this time as well."

"No you didn't."

"I did," Haru insisted, disliking Rin's accusations that he would lie. Haru pulled his phone out to find the proof, as he had indeed sent the text. He remembered doing so. "Ah..."

"What?" Rin inquired with crossed arms.

"I sent it to the wrong person... how did I do that?"

Haru's eyes widened when he realised who he sent it to: Nagisa. Shit.

"You're unbelievable."

"I came here to talk, anyway," Haru said. Teenagers did that right? Had nice rational conversations? Haru hoped so about.

"What do you mean?"

"I wanted to talk about when we ki-"

"Haru!" Rin yelled, his cheeks reddening remarkably. Rin grabbed Haru's arm and began to pull him out of the room. Gou had gotten out of her seat and on to her feet, with wide eyes and a hand covering her mouth.

"Haru, let's talk about this in my room, please," Rin pleaded, looking Haru right in the eyes.

"Yeah, okay," Haru replied, going upstairs with him.

* * *

><p>"Look, Rin," Haru began as he stood by the door of Rin's room, which was firmly closed. "We haven't talked about the fact that we kissed since it happened. I told you that I..."<p>

"Haru, I know what you said but... I don't think you were telling the truth. I mean we've only known each other for five weeks."

"Time doesn't change my feelings," Haru replied. _Although it really should_ he thought.

"Haru, I know you just wanted to have sex with me when we went to the beach."

"What?!" Haru spluttered.

"You were being pretty blatant about it but I don't really do hook-ups... and I have a boyfriend-"

"You have a boyfriend," Haru narrowed his eyes. "Who?"

"Who do you think it is?"

"Me?" Haru responded.

"No," Rin sighed exasperatedly. "It's Sousuke."

"What? How come you never told me?"

"Well, Sousuke's in the closet so he doesn't want anyone to know."

"Why would anyone want to hide the fact that they're in a relationship with you? You're literally the most amazing person I've ever met."

"You don't have to be sarcastic," Rin huffed.

"I wasn't being sarcastic," Haru said staring at Rin's eyes. "I've never meant something so much in my life."

Rin stared for a moment, eyes becoming wide and his face became very red. He buried his face in his hands and made a muffling whining sound and said something akin to "Oh my God!"

"You really are in love with me," Rin spluttered, "I'm sorry for saying that you just wanted to have sex with me."

"I kind of did want to have sex with you and stuff, though," Haru added. "If that makes you feel any better."

Rin peeked out from under his hands and then shook his head. Haru nodded his head awkwardly.

"Um, should I just..." Haru motioned towards the door. Rin nodded.

* * *

><p>"It could've gone worse," Haru told Makoto over the phone.<p>

"I suppose, but it could've much better. Why on Earth would you tell him you wanted to have sex with him after he told you he had a boyfriend and he thought you were just trying to get into his pants?" Makoto responded, he sounded pretty horrified.

"He looked like he felt really guilty and embarrassed so I thought he'd feel better if he knew it wasn't a baseless accusation. Also, my pants were kind o-"

"Haru," Makoto interupted.

"Yes?"

"I don't want to know about what you're pants were like when you were kissing Rin."

"I don't get it, Rin was the one who put his tongue in first," Haru mused.

"Eugh, Haru, I don't want to know. Look, why don't you take this as a sign? Rin is mortal, you are immortal. Here is your window of opportunity to discreetly exit this before you make things any worse for yourself."

"What, do you think if I stay longer we'll end up in a relationship?"

"No, I think you'll fall in love."

"I am in love with him."

"Are you sure? I think you're just infatuated."

"I know how I feel about Rin."

"Maybe you should stay longer. If you are infatuated, it'll probably wear off in a few weeks."

"So, you think I should stay and be with Rin."

"You need to actual do things something someone genuinely in love with him would do. You need to support him unconditionally, be happy to see him happy whether he loves you back or not. Okay?"

"Yeah," Haru replied, irritated.

"Okay, I've got to go. It's daytime where you called me."

"Where are you?"

"California."

"Have fun," Haru said.

"I will. Bye."

* * *

><p>Haru stared at his mobile phone, trying to figure how to send Rin a text message that was an apology but wasn't intrusive and wouldn't piss Sousuke off. He also wanted it to be short and punchy because if Rin saw that it was just pages long he'd think that Haru was weird and gushy and he would probably just skim the text.<p>

He remembered one time, when Rin was in the middle of talking about a British punk band from the nineties, Rin got a three page text from Nitori, his name was Aiichiro but Rin's group found his last name suited him better. Rin groaned about it and went into a mini-rant about how annoying it was when people sent long texts and that he always skims through them anyway. He then surmised that Nitori had found a DVD from a comedy show Rin had really liked when he was in Australia in the city nearby while he was shopping with Momo. He wanted to know if Rin wanted him to buy the DVD and then exchange it with Rin the next day for how much it cost.

Haru decided to take a walk on the pier to try and clear his head and maybe to try and empitomise his feelings towards Rin and his own fuck up. He grabbed his coat from the mostly bare wardrobe in his guest room and went out, waving the the man that worked the front desk- for what seemed like 24 hours per day- and said he'd be back in an hour.

* * *

><p>The wind on the pier was strong and gusty and the waves of the sea were a forceful cradle that rocked the pillars violently, trying to shake some sense into them. Haru found himself looking over the fence at the waves wishing they'd shake some sense into him.<p>

What was he doing? What he was trying to achieve? Get a teenage boy to fall in love with him and try and dodge the question "how come you don't age?" over and over again? Even then, when he thought about the fact he'd been lying about his age, he felt dirty. He didn't even know how old Rin was. Sixteen or seventeen, he assumed. He felt a bit uncomfortable thinking about the age difference. He felt like a dirty old man. He wasn't sure if he was or not. He felt like he didn't look like one and his sexual fantasies about Rin hadn't been _extremely_ graphic. He was more like a teenage boy, if he thought about it.

"Holy shit," Haru said over the side as he realised that he was going through the horny teenage boy phase of his life. "I'm a virgin."

And that just plummeted his mind into madness because he didn't know about Rin. Rin seemed to be pretty good at kissing when they had kissed on the beach. Haru hadn't been the one who'd pried Rin's mouth open, Rin had done that all by himself. If Rin was dating Sousuke, then how long had that been going on for? Rin had said they'd been friends since they were little so who knew when Sousuke had discovered his latent homosexual feelings for his friend.

"I've got no chance," Haru sighed as he looked across the sea.

"No chance with what?" A very familiar voice called.

"Nagisa?" Haru turned around to see that the... fairy had indeed turned up in this little fishing town.

"That's me!"

* * *

><p>"Wow, Haru, I really never thought you'd be the one out of the three of us to do something that crazy... I always thought it would be Makoto if I'm honest. But I guess he always has been the level headed one. I guess I just always assumed vampires were romantic... which is weird because <em>Dracula<em> never alluded to that point... but then again I read _Carmilla_ first because that came out first and there were some serious lesbian undertones in that. Carmilla was declaring her love for Laura in like every chapter, it was ridiculous. There was a part where Laura thought Carmilla was secretly a guy and was pretending to be a girl so she could woo her in secret but I think she dismissed that thought because Carmilla obviously had tits."

Nagisa was gearing into full on rant/lecture mode, in the middle of a fairly small twenty four hour fast food restaurant, provided mostly for people who were travelling through the sleepy little town. Haru wouldn't have minded much, if it weren't for the fact that he didn't want to be privy to a loud bisexual's rant/lecture on the pro's and cons of breasts when the vast majority of people in the cafe were judgy old people. Also, Haru had heard the lecture before and could vie that he really had no interest in breasts whatsoever.

"Before we get into a long, one-sided, discussion about lesbian subtext in Gothic literature, can I ask you how you got here so fast?"

"Haru it's been over twenty four hours since you sent me that text. I'm wondering what took me so long. Guess I'm getting slow in my old age."

"Have you done everything in the world yet then?" Haru asked, as he pushed gnarly bits of rugged iceberg lettuce from his burger around the paper wrapping with a plastic fork.

"I've realised over the years that it's impossible. By the time you've pulled every fig off the tree of life, you end up realising a whole orchid of new trees and possibilities have sprung up behind you. It's exhausting, in a good way, and I guess it gives you some hope for the future."

"I can't say it's been the same for me," Haru replied.

"Guess that's just because you don't how to grasp life. You want everything to stay the same. You think that moving about all the time is your way of trying to find something new but really it's just what you've always done. And then you move before you get to know anyone... Well, except for this time, anyway."

"Yeah. I guess it's because I met Rin on my first night here. The moment I-"

"Please don't go into a massive speech about how Rin capitulates everything that's alive and breathing about life again."

"You were about to lecture me about the pros and cons of breasts just a minute ago..." Haru responded sourly.

"How did you know? You said I was going to talk about lesbian subtext?"

"You said the word "tits" and that's honestly all it takes with you."

"I'm just waiting for medical science to advance so I can get a pair of my own."

"I thought you said you didn't have a gender. I thought boobs were for girls?"

"I am every gender," Nagisa replied.

"That sounds intense."

"It kind of is... in that a lot of people don't really_ get_ it."

An hour later Haru and Nagisa had finished their food, even though it was stone cold by the time they had gotten around to eating it. Their meeting had been mostly comprised of Nagisa ranting about bizarre experiences xe'd been involved in over the past year. Xe had a particularly exciting story about saving a girl on a run away camel or horse, that detail was a bit hazy, and finding out she was a rich heiress and being paid a handsome sum of money.

"I'll pay," Nagisa offered at the end of their meeting.

"Thanks," Haru replied.

"Are you still short on money?"

"I'm running low."

"You should get a job," xe suggested.

"I don't have any legal documentation which backs up my existence, or a CV."

"Well, I could mock up some files for you."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's no trouble at all. I know loads of people who fake their identity. Or you could steal someone's identity... but it's better to go with the former."

* * *

><p>The next week Haru received the fake documentation in the post from Nagisa as well as a fake CV filled with a number of, probably, fake schools and companies from other countries. Nagisa enclosed a note saying xe had used a few people he was friends with who would back up the CV if he needed them to.<p>

Haru sent a text message of thanks. He looked at the rest of his inbox and found that there were no new messages from Rin. He looked out the window of the bedsit, which overlooked the pier and he noticed that the students from Rin's school were walking to school.

He decided to go job searching today.

* * *

><p>There were very little retail jobs with vacancies. Actually there were none. The fishing town was struggling to support itself given that fishing made very little money and the amount of people who lived was fairly small.<p>

When he got back to his bedsit, he noticed that he'd left his mobile phone behind. It was sat on the bedside, glowing ominously. Haru picked it up, remembering that when the green light was glowing it meant that he had a new text message. He flipped it open and found that the new message was from... Rin.

Haru took a moment to breathe and sit down on the bed, to prepare himself in case it was Rin requesting to cut all times between them. He sincerely hoped it wasn't but he knew it was possible. He pressed the button to open the message.

_"Haru, can we talk? I miss you. Text me back soon."_

That hadn't been what he was expecting. Rin even confessed to missing him which was odd.

_"Yes. I miss you too. Sorry if this text is late. I was job hunting."_

_"Job hunting?"_

The reply was fairly instantaeous which surprised Haru as he had assumed Rin would be slow when it came to texting. He imagined he would think each reply through and question each word placement. Then again, he thought about how Rin could be extremely impulsive and spontaneous. Perhaps he tended to be the type to not think about texts that much.

_"Yes. I'm running low on money so I need to find a job."_

_"Sorry to hear that. Do you want some help?"_

Was it a good idea to rope Rin along into job hunting with him? Haru didn't think so. Given Nagisa's involvement and the, most likely, criminal means exercised to obtain the documents. If Rin saw his CV he might ask about the things on it and Haru didn't want to fabricate a huge lie about his life. He didn't like lying to Rin.

_"No thanks. But could you tell me if you see anything."_

_"Sure :)"_

Rin sent another text about a second later.

_"When do you want to talk?"_

_"When's good for you?"_

Haru's phone was eerily silent for at least three minutes. He drummed the side of the bed with his fingers and his foot began tapping the floor. He began trying to analyse ever pixel of his text message and tried to see if he could detect anything that could be taken the wrong way in his message. Maybe it came off as sexual and Rin felt uncomfortable again because of the last time they'd had a conversation. Then Haru began cringing over the whole "I did want to have sex with you" fiasco of about a week ago.

Haru's phone made a jazzy little sound and he realised he had just received a text message. He snatched up the phone almost immediately.

_"Come meet me at the pier at ten o'clock."_

_"Okay. See you then."_

* * *

><p>Haru felt giddy, like his stomach was twisting. He looked through his wardrobe but found he really didn't have a lot of clothes. He wondered what would make him look good but concluded that he had no fashions sense. He took a shower, making liberal use of the freebie toiletries that the hotel had left out. He wished that the smell was less of a nondescript musk and something more floral, like what Rin always had on.<p>

He tried to blow-dry his hair but then it ended up all knotted up and he took an additional ten minutes trying to comb it back, which ended up flattening it. He also ended up with much more fringe in his face than normal.

His jumper was big and dumpy and made out of wool and looked awful on him. His pants were grey and as non-descript as the lingering smell of free shampoo. His trainers were scuffed and had dirt on them and he realised that despite taking an hour longer than he usually would to get ready. He didn't look any different.

Still, he slid his jacket on and put his phone in his pocket and braved through the blistering wind which dragged the upcoming winter along in its wake. It was dark out and no cars ran along the road. His fingers itched in anticipation.

He could see Rin from across the road, waiting on the pier with his cheeks resting in his bare hands as he supported his elbows on the fence. Haru crossed the road and then walked really briskly over to see the redhead.

"Rin!" He called. The redhead raised his head and turned around, giving Haru a gentle smile. His face was reddened by the chill in the wind.

"Hi, Haru."

"So you wanted to talk?" Haru panted, but recovered quickly.

"Haru... do you want to kiss me?"

"What?" He gasped, his cheeks flushing slightly and eyes widening. He must've heard Rin wrong.

"Do you want to kiss me, Haru?" Rin said slowly, dragging out each word.

"Y-yes," Haru stuttered.

"Why don't you then?"

"Because, uh, you haven't asked me to? A-and you have a boyfriend!"

"Haru," Rin smiled sweetly, looking up from his perched position over the fence. "I want you to kiss me."

It was an immediate and maddening sensation and Haru would have felt embarrassed if he'd seen the way he'd grabbed Rin and kissed him. Rin kissed him back again and Haru felt assured in the reciprocation of his feelings for the crazy moments in which their lips where touching. Then Rin pulled away, panting heavily.

"J-Jesus, H-Haru... how can you go that long without... b-breathing?" Rin said as he huffed in air and tried to stand up straight. Haru almost explained that he didn't need to breathe but then he remembered that most, if not all mortals, definitely needed to breathe.

"I have a lot of practive from swimming."

"That's an impressive lung capacity," Rin chuckled, "Have you ever thought about contacting the _Guiness Book of World Records_?"

"The what?"

"You've never heard of the _Guiness Book of World Records_ before? I've got it at my house, I'll show you the next time you come over."

"Rin, as much as I'd love to act like everything's normal, it... really isn't and we just kissed, again. And we actually need to talk about this properly."

"What's there to talk about?"

"You've ignored me for the past week," Haru began.

"No, you ignored me. I thought you didn't want anything to do with me because you found out I had a boyfriend."

"I would never do that to you! I was giving you space to think."

"Well, I'm sorry that I don't know you very well. And couldn't you have sent me a text and been like 'Hey, Rin, do you want me to give you some space?' ?"

"I wasn't thinking. I just didn't want to make you feel like I expecting anything from you."

"At least you're admitting to not thinking."

"And why did you just ask me to kiss you?"

Rin was silent for a moment and he averted Haru's eyes and looked at the ground for a moment or two with seconds passing by in the bitter wind.

"I don't know... I wanted to remember what it was like. Whenever I'm with Sousuke... he never initiates _anything_. I don't whether he's shy or... if he doesn't actually like me _that_ way."

"He must!" Haru insisted. "He wouldn't have tried to punch me in the face for kissing you if he didn't."

"I suppose there's some truth to that," Rin replied.

"So, what happens next?" Haru asked.

"Uh, I don't know?" Rin offered as he slid his hands in his pockets. "We can figure it out together, if you want."

"I'd like that."

* * *

><p>AN: Thank you for the reviews last time. I'll try to update soon as hell. Okay?<p> 


	3. When I Sought My Bed

AN: Better late than never. Yep, gonna try co-writing this with Abnormal Functioning of Neurotransmitter Systems.

* * *

><p>Haru was about to walk out the bedsit to take a walk on the beach when he was stopped by the man who worked the desk.<p>

"Excuse me, are you Tsukino... something or other, from room 2C?" he called over to Haru. He'd almost said "no" but remembered he'd given a fake name when he got there and had avoided writing down a given name, somehow.

"Yes, my name is Tsukino, Haruka. I'm staying in room 2C. Why do you ask?" he walked over to the man working the desk. The man avoided Haru's eyes for a moment and scratched the side of his head. _Shit, please tell me it's nothing to do with the bill._

"Uh... last night we received some complaints about a large amount of noise coming from your room. We know that beforehand the second floor has been empty but we've had someone book room 2B so if you would try to keep your _private _time more... well, private, it would be a real help."

_Oh no..._

He was not going to admit to that. What was he supposed to say to that? Was he supposed to say he would...? Was supposed to say he had been...?

"I wasn't doing what you're implying I was doing last night. I was playing video games."

"Your room doesn't have a TV, sir..."

"I mean on my laptop."

"So, you're saying you have a laptop?"

"Yes, I do."

"The maid hasn't seen a laptop in your room before."

"That's because I hide it when I'm out."

"You say some odd things while you're playing video games, sir..."

"Yeah, well, a lot of gamers talk like that when they're really into a game."

* * *

><p>"Rin, do you know any... hotels in this town?" Haru asked as they sat in the local cafe, near the shopping centre. Rin had asked Haru to come with him today because he wanted to go clothes shopping. They'd had to take the bus in, they'd sat shoulder to shoulder in cramped seat with a man holding the holding strap who had had his armpit in Haru's face for the vast majority of the bus ride.<p>

"Well, there's a bedsit by the beach," Rin replied as he attempted to make a pyramid with a bunch of napkins he'd pulled out of a metal container which was full of them before they sat at the table.

"Yeah, I know, I've been staying there. Is there anywhere else?"

"You've been staying there for the past two months? Haru, what the hell? I thought you had a flat around here somewhere."

"I was only travelling but after the first week my parents cut my money off so I have to try get a job. Anyway, I can't afford to stay at that hotel anymore so I was wondering if there's anywhere else I can stay."

"If you're short on cash, you could stay at my house," Rin said as he tried to roll the napkins into a cylindrical shape

"Are you sure... I mean-"

"Sousuke, right? We've talked about it and he isn't pissed off at us anymore."

"Wait, he was pissed with you?"

Rin blushed and his hand stilled before he put his pyramid making to a complete halt.

"Well, beforehand, I'd kind of lied about what happened. I was like 'it was a heat of the moment kind of thing, Haru kissed me and I was like "what?" ' And Sousuke thought was what happened. Then when you two met and you said it was mutual he asked me about it and I told him it was true. That you asked to kiss me and I nodded and I kissed you back, quite a bit."

"How did he come around, after all that?" Haru said, attempting to move the subject on from the fact that time he and Rin kissed. Well, the first time he and Rin kissed.

"We talked it out and he said he didn't want to break up over something like that so yeah..."

"That's great but... I wasn't actually going to ask about if it was okay because of Sousuke."

"Figures."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, just... I mean, if I liked someone, I probably wouldn't be interested in how their significant other is doing."

"I would... I mean, if their significant other wasn't happy, they probably wouldn't be very happy and I... well, I wanted to ask if you had enough room. I don't mean to be rude but your house is a little on the small side?"

"My house is plenty big."

"For three people, yeah."

"We have a guest room... if you consider having a pull out sofa in the living room a guestroom."

"Not particularly, but I'm not in a position to be picky."

"Great, I'll talk to my mum about it tonight."

"Excuse me," someone had walked up to the table, holding a pad and paper. "You've been in here for nearly an hour now and you haven't ordered anything. Please order something or leave."

* * *

><p>When Haru woke up, he found his phone glowing ominously again, alerting him of a text message.<p>

_"Mum says you can stay. See you soon!"_

Haru took a deep breath, trying to give his brain enough air to think properly, not that it was a particularly simple task.

_"Can I come over today? I think it would be good to move out soon before my bill starts piling up."_

_"Sure."_

Haru went to packing his backpack immediately, grabbing the fake legal documentation from underneath his mattress first. Then he gathered various jumpers which were scattered about the room and then grabbing the two pairs of jeans he wasn't wearing from the wardrobe. Then he grabbed his copy of 'Le Portrait de Dorian Gray' from his bedside table. He'd found that the French translation was better than the Japanese translation, despite Japanese being his first language. He supposed it was because the first language the book had been written in was English, another Latin based language like French would have a smoother translation from the original piece.

The copy was old with yellowed pages. He'd bought one of the first French translations of it when he had lived in Paris for a year. That was probably the longest time he'd stayed in one place. He supposed he'd liked Paris a lot, the bakeries the most. He'd enjoyed Venice a lot too. Egypt had been nice, when he went, but he hadn't been a fan of the heat.

He crammed the ancient book into his rucksack and then gave his room a swift, sweeping glance. Nothing of his appeared to have been left in the room so he exited instantly and went down the sets of the stairs which lead to the hotel lobby.

"Mr. Tsukino, are you going on a hike?" the man at the front desk called, peering over his glasses.

"Actually, I'm going to be checking out today," Haru said, hand sliding into his pocket so he could get his wallet.

"If this is about that incident the other day then it's really not a big deal."

"N-no, I'm checking out because I can't afford to stay here anymore. I'm running low on cash and a friend offered to let me stay at their house."

"Oh, right, well if you'd like a job then you can come and see us tomorrow. We're actually quite low on staff."

"Really? That would be great. Um, so what is my bill, exactly?"

"That would be about 433,500 yen," he replied. Haru's eyes widened, the last time he checked his wallet he had about 430,000 yen left. "Are you alright, sir?"

"Um... I only have 430,000 yen left. I don't have enough money to cover the costs."

"Well, maybe some of your wages could go into paying it back and we'll put on some interest while you're doing it?"

"That would be great, thank you."

"Don't worry about it, 3,500 yen isn't even enough to pay for a night at the hotel, you'll pay it off pretty quickly."

"Here's the money, by the way," Haru said as he pulled all the money in his wallet and passed it over to the man who worked behind the desk. He pushed his glasses up as he counted the money before nodding at Haru and pulling out a pen and piece of paper.

"You're free to leave, sir."

* * *

><p>"Hi, Haru!" Rin greeted him cheerfully at the front door and pulled him into his little house through the door with a smile on his face. "Have you met my mum yet?" he asked.<p>

"No, actually, I've met your sister though," Haru said.

"Okay, well, let me warn you, she can be a little... intense. Just a warning."

"I'll keep that warning in mind," Haru responded as Rin practically pushed him into the kitchen where Rin's family were all eating their lunch.

"Mum, this is Haru," Rin called over Haru's shoulder.

"Hello, Haru. I'm Ms. Matsuoka, but you can call me Mai, which is my first name."

"Hi, Mai, I'm Haru... uh, Tsukino, Haru," he responded.

"So, you've got to tell me about yourself. Rin talks about you quite often but I can't quite figure you out."

"Haru's a bit of an enigma, mum," Rin said, resting his head on Haru's shoulder.

_Our cheeks. Are. Touching! _Haru thought. He felt himself blush slightly.

"Oh look, your face is all red," Ms. Matsuoka said, motioning towards her cheeks.

"Yeah, it's pretty cold outside."

"Don't tell me you walked all the way here! Why didn't you take the bus?"

"Oh, I actually spent all my money paying the money for my bedsit. Actually, I didn't have enough for that either but they offered me a job to help pay it off."

"Really, you got a job?" Rin responded. "Haru, that's great."

"Well, they want to interview me tomorrow and see what happens."

"Haru, that's great," Rin repeated with a smile, he then withdrew himself from behind Haru and walked over to the fridge. His sister, Gou, looked up from her eggs and smiled.

"Rin tells us that you like travelling. Where's the furthest you've been?" Ms. Matsuoka asked, sitting back down in her seat and re-acquainting herself with her lunch.

"I went to France for a bit. Stayed in paris for a year," Haru replied, shifting his feet a bit, noting the two empty chairs. One had a plate set out in front of it, the other didn't. Haru looked over to Rin who was pouring himself a glass of tropical juice.

"Paris! That's wonderful, when did you go?"

"When I was twelve, with my parents. I liked the bakeries the best."

"I've always wanted to go to a Parisian bakery," Gou sighed. A small bubble of laughter surfaced from Rin's lips.

"Haru, would you like something to eat?" Rin asked. Ms. Matsouka dropped her chopsticks and jumped from her chair as if it were on fire.

"I'm so sorry, Haru. I haven't had proper guests in a while. You must be starving. Can I get you something to eat? Drink?" she said with a smile and at a rate of a million words a second.

"Oh, no, I'm fine. I'll just take a seat."

"Are you sure?" Rin called as he took his glass away from his mouth, beads of tropical juice glistening on his lips.

"Maybe, I could have some water, please?" Haru replied.

"Of course," Ms. Matsuoka set about pouring the glass of water whilst Rin and Haru sat down at the table. "You'll have to tell me more about Paris sometime," she called. "I've always wanted to go myself."

* * *

><p>Later that evening, Haru found himself sitting with Rin in Rin's bedroom. The redhead had began going through the things in Haru's rucksack. Pulling everything out and making comments on it.<p>

"You seriously only have two pairs of jeans?" Rin asked quirking an eyebrow as he held up the second pair.

"Three, if you count the ones I'm wearing right now," Haru replied.

"I don't," Rin laughed. Then he pulled out a brown enevelope and Haru's eyes widened.

"What's this?" Rin asked.

"Private. Rin, it's private. It's a letter from a friend. Please, put it back in the bag."

"Alright, alright. Jeez, Haru, calmed down," Rin replied, recoiling slightly as he slid it back.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to snap. It's just, it's from a friend and it has private things in there that I don't think they would be comfortable with anyone else reading."

"What, like a _boyfriend_?" Rin prompted, bouncing back from his unnerved stated disconcertingly swiftly.

"No, I've never had a boyfriend, or a girlfriend."

"Wait, really?" Rin asked, his eyes wide as he turned back to stare at Haru. Haru nodded, his movements stuttered slightly. "I can't belive that. That's impossible."

"I don't tend to be interested in relationships, I'm... afraid of getting attached."

"Is it because you moved around a lot when you were younger?" Rin asked, his eyebrows had knotted slightly and he looked at Haru with a concern which Haru was sure he'd never seen displayed on his face before.

"Yeah... it's a little more complicated than that, I don't want to lie to you but... I don't want to tell you the truth about this either."

"What do you mean?"

"It's... I really like you, Rin. I like you so much. In fact I love you but you know that. But I can't tell you about this, or anyone, really?"

"Why?"

"My family is a little weird, to say the least. It's nothing I would feel comfortable talking to you, or anyone for that matter, about."

"That's kind of odd, Haru."

"You think I don't know that? Haru snapped. "It's prevented me from getting close to anyone for a really long time," he added, more softly now though.

"Wow, that's really depressing…"

"But, I am away from them now in some sense so I feel a little more comfortable getting close to people. Getting close to you. I just don't know if I'm ready to share everything about my life up to this point yet with you."

"Yeah, I understand. By 'yet' do you mean you might tell me one day?" Rin asked with shining eyes.

"I might. They keyword is 'might'."

* * *

><p>"You sure you'll be comfortable on the couch?" Mai, Ms. Matsuoka, called from the doorway.<p>

"Yes, it's no big deal really," Haru replied, pulling up his blankets so that they were over his shoulders.

"If the house were a little more spacious I'd pull out a futon… I could set it up in Rin's room, if you're okay with that."

"No, I'm fine on the couch, Ms- Mai," Haru replied as he dug around his bag looking for his copy of 'Le Portrait de Dorian Gray' and opened the first page, fingers stroking circles into the roughened yellow pages.

"Oh, what's that?"

"It's a… second or third addition print of 'Le Portrait de Dorian Gray'. It's a French translation of an Oscar Wilde novel about a man called Dorian Gray who makes a deal with the devil to never age as long as he can stay young forever and so that the ugliness inside of him is reflected in the portrait, not himself."

"Oh, that's sounds interesting. So do you speak French fluently?" she asked.

"Yes, I picked it up in France and I bought a few French translations of European literature when I was there, because the languages don't translate to Japanese very well, so then I made sure to learn French so I could read them properly."

"Rin learnt fluent English when he went to Australia, he's such a smart boy."

"Rin's been to Australia?"

"Oh, yes, I'm surprised he didn't tell you. He went away for… four years to train… to improve his swimming. I don't whether I should be telling you this but when he came home, he seemed so sad and withdrawn. I thought it was just because he really missed Australia but… a mother's intuition says it's something more."

"Is he better now?" Haru asked, sitting up a little straighter on the sofa.

"I think so. I hope so," she sighed and moved into the kitchen. "I'm making chamomile tea, do you want some?"

"Yes, please," Haru replied, not wanting to come off rude by reject Ms. Matsuoka's offers of food again.

"You can help, boil the water for me, I'll get the cups," she called over her shoulder. Haruka nodded and grabbed the kettle from the stand.

"How far should I fill?" he asked.

"There's symbols on the side for how many cups. Fill it to three cups."

Haru nodded and began to fill the kettle with cold water until it reached the white line which was aligned with the little 3.

"If you put it on the side and flip the switch on the back it'll boil by itself," Ms. Matsuoka called as she pulled the chamomile out of the cabinet and set the tin box of it down. Haru had already done so.

"There we go," she smiled as she pulled out three mugs and wiped the inside of them with a piece of kitchen roll. "Why don't we sit at the table till the water's finished boiling?"

"Sure," Haru replied as he pulled a chair out and Ms. Matsuoka sat in the seat opposite to the one Haru had chosen.

They sat in idle silence for a handful of seconds. Ms. Matsuoka stared out of the window absentmindedly whilst Haru sat stiffly pin straight in his seat.

"Haru, can I ask you a question?" she asked.

"Of course," he replied. The steam rose from the kettle but it wasn't whistling yet.

"Are you in love with my son?" she asked. The kettle screeched. "Oh dear, that the hot water, could you get the chamomile tea bags in the cups for me?"

Haru nodded and jumped from his seat immediately so he could busy himself with something other than the conversation. _What if she's homophobic? What if she's afraid I'm taking advantage of him? Does she know about Rin and Sousuke's relationship?_

One chamomile tea bag in the cup with a cat on it, the one he drank from when he came to visit Rin that day and had become officially acquainted with Sousuke. The second teacup had an elephant on it and the third cup had a dog painted on. _Cat, elephant, dog _he thought as he dropped the tea bags in the cup.

"Thank you," Ms. Matsuoka hummed. "Which cup do you want?"

"Oh, I don't mind."

"No, pick a cup."

"I'll have the cat mug."

"Alright, how much water do you want?" she asked, looking at Haru over her shoulder. "How about you tell me when?"

Haru nodded and watched the water fill the cup to about four fifths of its capacity and then said "That's plenty."

"The good," she said, busying herself with the other cups of tea. "So are you? In love with my son, that is?"

"Well…" Haru paused and picked up the mug by the handle, feeling the smooth ceramic against his palm. "I suppose that I love him."

"How sweet," she chimed. "I think that you would be better for him than Sousuke, I don't why, call it mother's instinct but there's something about Sousuke and him being in a relationship that doesn't quite sit right with me. They grew up together, they were almost like brothers. I don't think Rin can really see him that way, I think it's stunting his view of love. It's quite sad, the way good friends so often believe they should fall in love."

"You know about Rin's relationship with Sousuke?"

"I've known you for a day and I already know you're in love with my son. Very little slips past me," she mused. "Well, I've got to take this up to Gou. Goodnight, Haruka."

"Goodnight, Ms. Matsuoka."

* * *

><p>"You're not going to a job interview dressed like that," Rin huffed, like at Haru with furrowed eyebrows and wide eyes. He shook his head. "Let me lend you something?"<p>

"I think your clothes might be a tad big on me, Rin," Haru replied, eyeing Rin from the corner of his eye.

"I'll give you one of my older school shirts so you don't look like a _gormless_ teenager when you apply for the job."

"I do not look like a gormless teenager."

"You do a bit," Rin hummed as he glided over to his wardrobe. "Please just try a shirt on, looking smart is super important at job interviews."

"Fine, go ahead. I suppose it can't hurt anyone," Haru looked over his shoulder just in time to see the sweet smile on Rin's lips and the dazzle in his eyes at being granted permission to potentially style Haru. Thinking over some of the dodgier numbers Haru had seen Rin wearing -the most memorable being a pair of tight fitting _totally not _fuchsia pair of leopard printing leggings-, Haru groaned silently over what he'd gotten himself into.

And yet despite Rin's flair for flamboyance, Haru actually looked pretty normal. He looked smart but he didn't look wild or glitzy, he looked like someone who could easily blend into a crowd.

"See, I told you that you'd look good," Rin hummed, resting his head on Haru's shoulder. Haru was too flustered over the compliment to mention that Rin had never said that.

"I'm surprised you didn't try to wrestle me into a pair of metallic magenta jeggings," Haru jibed.

"Shut up," Rin muttered, withdrawing from Haru. "Besides, I'm the only one who looks good in that stuff."

"You look adorable in it," Haru mumbled, thinking aloud.

"What?" Rin's face had turned crimson. Haru turned around so that he and Rin stood face to face.

"You look adorable in all of your flamboyant clothes," Haru repeated. Still blushing, Rin gave Haru a kiss on the cheek.

"You should get going," Rin then said, turning Haru towards the door, "punctuality is important."

* * *

><p>An: Haru was totally playing video games on the laptop he doesn't even have, for sure.<p> 


End file.
